The present invention relates to a junction box and a method of assembly thereof and, more particularly, a junction box intended for use in automobiles.
Junction boxes are typically used in automobiles to connect electrical components. Often, they include a busbar substrate assembly housed within a casing, which typically includes an upper case and a lower case sealed by a gasket. The casing may have two or more connectors, which are used to form the electrical connection between electrical components. The busbar substrate assembly may include multiple busbar substrates, each including an insulating substrate and a busbar to provide the circuitry required to make an electrical connection between components.
Depending on the application, each busbar substrate provided within a junction box may not be utilized. That is, as junction boxes are made uniform across a vehicle platform or multiple platforms in order to save manufacturing costs, the junction box may include several busbar substrates but not utilize each busbar substrate for a given application depending upon the required circuitry. Eliminating a busbar substrate that is not required for a particular application to save manufacturing costs is not practically feasible because the spacing within the junction box cannot be maintained when eliminating a busbar substrate layer. If spacing is not maintained, excessive noise or damage may result from loosely fit busbar substrates.
In order to eliminate the noise and/or component damage that might result from loosely fit busbar substrates, and allowing an unnecessary busbar substrate to be removed to save manufacturing costs for a particular application, the junction box and method for assembly described in detail herein is provided.
Generally, the junction box according to the invention includes a housing for a busbar substrate assembly including a plurality of busbar substrates. The lower case includes spacing and positioning piers for alternatively positioning one of the plurality of busbar substrates or maintaining the spacing of another busbar substrate. More specifically, the junction box includes a housing defined by a lower case and an upper case, the busbar substrate assembly including a plurality of busbar substrates, each including an insulating substrate and a busbar, a pier assembly including one or more piers for positioning one of the busbar substrates or maintaining the spacing of the remaining busbar substrates, wherein the pier assembly is formed on the housing. In one version of the invention, the pier assembly is formed on the lower case. In a variation of the invention, the pier assembly includes a single pier. In another variation, the pier assembly includes multiple piers.
A method for assembling a junction box includes providing a housing having an upper case and a lower case, providing a pier assembly on the housing, providing a busbar substrate assembly including one or more busbar substrates, disposing a busbar substrate in the lower case, and maintaining a spacing within the housing by positioning the busbar substrate such that the pier assembly is received therethrough or positioning the busbar substrate on the pier assembly.
Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.